Modest Mouse - This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About

Frontman Isaac Brock's claim that he's being stalked by his own alter ego was not the first bit of evidence that Modest Mouse isn't your usual pop band. Witness the entirety of this 1996 indie debut from the Washington trio that inspired a major-label bidding war. This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About finds Brock cruising with cohorts Eric Judy and Jeremiah Green (plus an occasional cellist) through a landscape of intoxicatingly original lo-fi tunes. Sure, Brock's early vocals make Nikki Sudden sound like one smooth crooner, but their strained quality offset the primitive elegance of his guitar work, giving a passionate vulnerability to "Breakthrough," "Custom Concern," and other treatises on life in the lost lane. --Bill Forman Amazon.com

You know what I'm never going to forget?

Though I don't remember the day or year, I'll always remember how I felt the first time this played through my speakers. The way I thought the first song ("Dramamine") was unearthly beautiful...then the way every song after that blended into each other and I wasn't sure WHAT the hell that noise was.

During song #2 I remember thinking, "Wow...this guy has a really distinct way of screaming through his nose." By the time song #4 came on, I'd decided it was the dirtiest piece of music I'd ever listened to. Not dirty as in immoral, but dirty as in it literally felt like I was scrubbing my ears against a metal washboard. 70 minutes of "Long Drive" was too much at first. It was raw. Not just unpolished, but RAW - in a way I thought might crack the CD if I played it too fast.

My impression was how horrible it was. Yet I listened to it again. Then just once more. Then once more after that. Suddenly it didn't sound so dirty anymore, and I began questioning my judgement of it. If this is so bad, why am I liking it so much?

I was lucky enough to see Modest Mouse live in 2006 and they opened the show with "Dramamine" and I thought I might have been dreaming. Considering how bad I thought it was initially, this album has long since become one of the best things in my life. Lay on your back, turn the volume up, and watch how the whole world turns as navy blue as the album cover. I'd give this 10 out of 5. April 3, 2008

for anyone who is alive

This is, overall, my favorite Mouse album. The first three tracks work together so well, with the looping meandering guitar riffs and the lyrics that sound like the life of every disenchanted teenager or young adult that's ever lived. As always with Mouse there are some tracks that get a little noisy or sound a little incomplete, but that's part of the charm. Brock doesn't write consistently perfect songs, but he writes so many perfect songs that it's almost a relief to realize that he's not flawless. Perhaps the most gifted lyricist in alternative rock, some of the wordplay is pure poetry. July 7, 2007

great first LP

I am a huge modest mouse fan. but i know this record is not for everyone.
please start with the new modest mouse this stuff might turn you off to them at first listen. I love this CD! it has so many great qualities that dont show up on other modest mouse records.

1.Dramamine- great opening song awesome guitar rift. 5/5
2.Breakthrough- good song nice odd vocals.BUT THATS WHAT WE LOVE 4/5
3.Custom Concern- good lyrics slide guitar this one stands out 5/5
4.Might- short simple song 3/5
5.Lounge- starts fast pace ends in a slow rock jam. 4/5
6.Beach Side Property- features some screaming vocals which you dont find often in modest mouse a great song. 5/5
7.The Ionizes and Atomizes- sounds very bipolar- 3/5
8.Head South- More screaming in chorus and nicole johnson with backup vocals. really good song. "Struck by being ashamed of your old space" 5/5
9.Dog Paddle- screaming cool little song with coughs and wheezes through it. 4/5
10.Novocain Stain- a really really good song! 5/5
11.Tundra/Desert-One of their hardest hitting songs. 5/5
12.Ohio- right now im obsessed with the great lyrics in this song. "I'm upset and i leave the door open wide our hearts are used up cracked and dried." Amazing 5/5
13.Exit does not Exist- cool title blazing drums. 4/5
14.Talking shit about a pretty Sunset- one of the best songs on the album. 5/5
15.Make Everyone Happy/Mechanical Birds- starts off kinda sweet then goes full blown guitar jam. 4/5
16.Space Travel is Boring- nice song but not to special to me. 3/5

I love this cd but its not their best work.
i definitely recommend it to anyone likes Building nothing out of Something or Lonesome crowded west. June 16, 2007

Really catchy work...arguably Modest Mouse's best

I really enjoy the overall dry twangyness in this album. The opening tracks are instant indie/alternative classics. Very quirky, laid back material that could easily please any Modest Mouse fan. I also recommend Lonesome Crowded West for more wonderful work. February 13, 2007

Best Modest Mouse album

Here is what I have to say: This is my favorite Modest Mouse album. This album captures to total perfection what it feels like to be sad and cold but at the same time filled with a sweet appreciation for your own existence. There is such a fantastic reality to be found here. This will always be at the top for me. There is a good section of my life in which this is the definitive soundtrack. The music can be so bare but masterfull it makes you want to scream. Like living in a sparse cold room that you still find beautiful. If you want good music then, here, take this. January 30, 2007

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